


Not According to Plan

by Bytes



Category: Persona 4
Genre: Fluff and Mush, Future Fic, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-21
Updated: 2019-12-21
Packaged: 2021-02-26 07:42:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,156
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21869995
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bytes/pseuds/Bytes
Summary: Yosuke prepares to present Yu with the ultimate Christmas gift: a marriage proposal. But things quickly go awry because they always do when Yosuke’s involved.
Relationships: Hanamura Yosuke/Narukami Yu, Hanamura Yosuke/Seta Souji
Comments: 12
Kudos: 67
Collections: Souyo Secret Santa Gift Exchange 2019





	Not According to Plan

**Author's Note:**

  * For [artikgato](https://archiveofourown.org/users/artikgato/gifts).



> Merry Christmas @artikgato, I was your souyo secret santa! Allow me a moment to say I’m a huge fan of your writing and so I’m honored to write something for you! I hope you enjoy this!  
> I honestly liked all your prompts so I had a hard time narrowing it down, but I decided to combine a couple to write a tooth-rotting fluff piece. That being said, perhaps I’ll visit the other prompts and tack them on as little bonus ficlets down the road!
> 
> Prompt:  
> The boys get snowed in + the boys have a tradition of trying to one-up their Christmas gifts from year-to-year and one (or both) of them are planning on proposing this year

When it started out, Yu and Yosuke hadn’t intended to turn it into a competition every Christmas. Gift-giving between best friends had evolved into a tradition of trying to one-up each other in an affectionate, but fiery battle that could’ve had a body count at this point. After Yu had presented him with a very thoughtful present their first Christmas of knowing each other, Yosuke had resolved to out-gifting his friend. They had each won some and lost some over the years, and during that time they had gone from best friends- Partners- to lovers.

This year Yosuke not only was prepared to win, but he planned on blowing Yu so far out of the water that the silver haired man would have to forfeit their competition and declare his boyfriend the winner once and for all. The plan was simple: after some wining and dining, he would take Yu back to their hometown and reminisce. Then he would take him to the riverbank where they had originally confessed to one another. After playing him a song on his guitar, that’s where he’d pop the question and propose to Yu Narukami on Christmas Eve. It wasn’t an overly elaborate scheme; his boyfriend liked to keep it simple.

  
That had _been_ the plan, anyway, but it was just Yosuke’s luck to have the forecast call for heavy snow starting in the afternoon on Christmas Eve. It would not be ideal to trudge through the streets of Inaba just for him to propose. Being cold, wet and miserable did not make for the most romantic of atmospheres. What would he do if his plans were snowed out? He did not have a backup plan other than to postpone the proposal, but that would leave him without a present for Yu aside from some small gifts to populate the underside of their Christmas tree. This anxiety had Yosuke pacing throughout the house, phone in hand and checking the weather forecast every few minutes as if the threat of incoming snow would somehow vanish. 

The sound of the front door opening pulled his attention away from the weather momentarily as he heard the familiar clunk of Yu’s boots just out of sight. He had work that morning, much to both of their dismay of course.

“I’m home!” called Yu, which had his caramel haired boyfriend excitedly bounding towards the entrance to the house to welcome him home. He caught him setting aside his boots before looking up and greeting him with a warm smile. His usually pale complection was marked with a red nose and rosy cheeks. Of course, the last nail on the lid of the coffin was the residual snowflakes that dusted his thick grey coat that were quickly melting.

“Welcome back. How was work?”

“Eh. I really wished I was home with you the whole time,” Yu admitted with no hesitation, leaning in to give Yosuke a quick peck on the lips which he eagerly reciprocated. They parted briefly, Yosuke cupping Yu’s cold face tenderly with a hand.

“I wished you were home too, Partner.”

“Well, I am now, so how about we make up for lost time, hm?” Yu hummed. Yosuke could feel some warmth returning to his skin underneath his hand.

“Of course.” The music enthusiast quickly closed the gap between them once more, giving his partner an actual kiss instead of just a peck. Yu accepted it happily, tilting his head and leaning in to deepen it and reminding Yosuke just how lucky a man he was.

When they finally parted for good, Yosuke released him so he could finish undressing. “Say… how’s the weather looking out there?”

“Mm, not great. The snow was starting to pick up when I walked up to the house,” the silver haired leader informed him sadly. “There’s already about an inch on the ground.”

“Damn…”

“I know we’re supposed to go out for dinner, but… I’m not sure it would be safe to drive. I almost slipped in the driveway.”

His words caused Yosuke to visibly slump over, looking quite defeated. Was he really looking forward to this dinner out that much? Yu was disappointed too of course, but there was something in his lover’s expression he couldn’t quite decipher. Perhaps he had been planning something, it was Christmas Eve after all. “I’d rather us stay put and stay safe. Christmas in the hospital is not very fun.”

“You’re right, but..”

“We can reschedule it when the weather clears up. How about tonight I cook us something? Whatever you like,” he offered sympathetically.

“I’m supposed to be the one treating you tonight, you jerk,” Yosuke huffed, though his words held no malice.

“We could cook together, then.” It’s true that Yosuke had picked up some cooking skills over the years through Yu’s guidance, but he was on a whole other level when it came to preparing delicious meals, so he was usually the one to do the cooking.

“Okay, but you get to pick what we have.”

“And what if I happen to pick your favorite, hm?” Yu teased, shooting his lover one of his shit eating smirks that made Yosuke want to both punch and kiss him.

“Then I won’t kiss you for the rest of the day.”

“That is an overly cruel punishment. I might die.”

“Uhuh.”

“It’s true.” Yu pressed up against Yosuke’s side, arms wrapping around him pointedly as he weaseled his head into the crook of his boyfriend’s neck. “Are you trying to kill me, Yosuke?”

“H-Hey, that tickles…!” the boy protested, pretending to put up a fight against Yu’s advances. “Maybe I am!”

“So that’s been your plan this whole time? Lower my guard by seducing me… then strike when the time is right!” To emphasize, Yu craned his head to gently bite the sensitive skin of Yosuke’s neck and earning a gasp from the other male. “Truly despicable!”

“You’re a bastard, you know that?” came the flustered huff of Yosuke as heat flooded his cheeks.

“Mm, maybe. But I’m _your_ bastard. Isn’t that right… _Partner_?” he purred, squeezing his arms tighter around his waist.

That was a critical hit, of course. Yu didn’t often call Yosuke that, it was more his term of affection for Yu. So the rare occasions that he did use it always made his heart flutter. “You’re something alright!” he managed to bark back. Yu took this as his cue to scoop the other boy into his arms and carry him off bridal-style towards the kitchen. “Agh! Hey! What’re you-

“We’ll pick out something to cook together.”

“You could’ve just told me to follow you.”

“I could’ve.”

“But you just wanted to show off.”

“Perhaps.”  
  
It was decided that they would make curry, as Yu had obtained the recipe from a friend some time ago and it was delicious, especially with a warm cup of coffee. Yosuke did the tasks that required less skill, like making the rice and washing dishes. This gave him time to think of what he was going to do, since his whole plan had gone up in smoke. He glanced over at his partner who had begun to hum while he cooked and was completely absorbed in it. The way his heart swelled only further emphasized how much he loved him. Even if it wasn’t how he planned, Yosuke resolved to propose that night and find new ways to make it special. There’s absolutely no way he could wait any longer.

It wasn’t long before his staring was found out and Yu met his gaze warmly. “Need something?” he questioned with a soft smile.

“Nope, I have all I need right in front of me” the chestnut-haired boy affirmed with a nod.

“That was smooth” Yu hummed before returning his attention to the curry, though the slight blush that dusted his cheeks and the subtle softening of his features did not go unnoticed by Yosuke’s trained eye. “Dinner will be ready soon.”

“Good, I’m practically drooling over here.”

“Just don’t get it in the rice.”

“Maybe it would add some extra flavor,” he mused.

All Yu could do in response was let out a soft chuckle and shake his head.

Of course, the curry was delicious. The coffee Yosuke had made wasn’t half bad either; it paired well with the flavorful dish. The pair were left full and satisfied with not much leftover. When Yu cooked, there hardly ever were leftovers.

“Is it just me or does curry taste even better in the winter?”

“I think all meals taste better when I get to share them with others. Especially you,” the investigation team leader answered thoughtfully before taking a sip of his coffee.

“Aww, partner… you’re makin’ me blush.” He recalled that Yu was pretty lonely growing up, his parents always being gone and forcing him to move around so much. Inaba was the first real time he had gotten to experience what it truly meant to have a family. When he had confided in Yosuke about his past, he made sure to eat meals with his best friend as much as he could so that he would never have to eat alone again.

“I mean it though. I’m so lucky to have you.”

“Yu…” the Junes heir stammered, covering his mouth to hide his newfound fluster. “You gotta warn me before you say things like that…”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to embarrass you.” His apology did not sound very sincere as he got up with a soft chuckle and picked up both of their plates before leaning down and pressing a kiss to Yosuke’s forehead before sauntering off to the kitchen to clean up. It was a few moments before he snapped out of his Yu-inflicted daze, head craning around to see where the other man had gone.

“Hey, let me clean up! You’re the one who cooked!”

“We cooked it together, Yosuke,” Yu reminded him.

“Can you let me pamper you a little for _one_ night?”

“I don’t mind cleaning up, though. You know I like to clean.”

“C’mon, it’s Christmas! Let me take care of it, you go get comfy on the couch.”

“..Only if you let me wear the cat pajama pants.”

Yosuke rolled his eyes and gave an exasperated, but affectionate sigh. “Fine, you can wear the cat pants. They are soft.”

“I’m wearing the socks too~” Yu hummed before slinking out of the kitchen and off to their bedroom. The socks he was referring to were a pair of fuzzy socks that had paws on the bottom. Only Yosuke got to really see this dorky side of him and while he pretended he was annoyed, he mostly found it endearing.

After finishing the dishes and putting away the minimal amount of leftover curry, Yosuke padded into the living room to see Yu clad in his cat attire, along with what was definitely one of his boyfriend’s band shirts and looking quite content to be doing so. “Someone looks comfortable.”

“Almost.”

“Almost?”

“C’mere.”

“Not even a please, huh?” he jokingly chastised while sitting down beside him anyway. Yu immediately leaned against him with a hum, Yosuke draping his arm around the man’s shoulders and pressing a kiss to his head before resting back against him. It was a picturesque scene: two lovers cuddled up together on the couch in front of the fireplace- Yu must have turned it on before settling down. “Sorry I couldn’t take you out tonight. We’ll go some other time, okay?”

“...Is it cheesy of me to say that I don’t mind because I’m just happy to be with you?”

“The _cheesiest_. But… I’m glad. There’s no one else I’d rather spend my time with.”

“I love you, Yosuke,” Yu informed him with such earnesty and tenderness that it made Yosuke’s heart leap into his throat. He wasn’t used to his boyfriend being so outwardly affectionate. Not that it was unwelcome, of course.

“God, Partner… I love you too. Do I tell you that enough? I love you so much.” He couldn’t help the goofy, affectionate smile that formed on his face as his eyes watered up a little. “Heh… I guess I’m being cheesy too.”

“I like cheesy,” Yu insisted as he shifted to look at the brunette fondly before pulling him into a deep kiss.

After many more kisses and affectionate murmurings, the two decided to watch some old Christmas movie they only partially paid attention to while enjoying each other’s presence. During this time, Yosuke planned out his new at-home proposal. Maybe he couldn’t take Yu to the riverbank, but he still could play him a song on his guitar and present him with the silver band he picked out.  
  


Once the movie was over, Yosuke pressed a kiss to his boyfriend’s temple before standing up. Yu looked up at him curiously, but before he could ask a question Yosuke explained, “just gonna go throw something a little more comfortable on, be right back, partner.” This excuse was enough to sate the silver haired man’s curiosity as he slunk off to prepare himself.

The first thing the Prince of Junes did was retrieve the ring from its hiding space inside his guitar case. It blended in amongst the instrument related odds and ends and Yu only touched it when Yosuke would take it out to play it, so it was a good hiding place. He clutched the velvety box in his hand, it suddenly feeling much heavier than it ever had before. Once he showed it to Yu, there would be no going back. There was no doubt they loved each other, but what if he wasn’t ready to take the next step in their relationship? Yosuke would make an idiot of himself, and it’s kinda hard to pretend a rejected marriage proposal never happened. “You’re overthinking this, Yosuke…” he murmured to himself, stashing the box in his pocket before slapping himself in the cheeks a few times. “You got this.” After psyching himself up, he picked up his guitar by the neck and supporting it with his other hand as he headed back to the living room.

“Is the guitar part of your ‘more comfortable’ outfit?” Yu questioned with intrigue upon seeing it.

“Ah, well, I got distracted.”

“Did you now?”

“Can’t a guy play his partner a song?” he fake pouted. “Trying to be romantic here!”

“Of course he can!” Yu assured, patting the space beside him to encourage Yosuke to play for him. He obliged, plopping himself down and crossing his legs so he could rest his guitar's side on his thigh while supporting the neck in his left hand. “What are you gonna play?”

“Something I wrote, actually… unless you have any requests?” he asked sheepishly.

“No, no. I want to hear your song,” Yu insisted, watching his partner intently. “Does it have a name?”

“Not yet. I was hoping you could help me name it after, yeah?”

“Alright, I’ll do my best.”

“Right. Okay…” Yosuke paused to take a deep breath, steeling his nerves. “Here goes.” His slender fingers began strumming away at the strings. He hadn’t written any lyrics, so he just hummed along as he played the song he had practiced so many times for this very moment. He did his best to steady his hands, but he couldn’t help but be nervous.

The melody was slow and rhythmic, which contrasted Yosuke’s usual upbeat style that Yu had grown to know. It went on for a little over a minute before it reached its finish with a gentle strum that had Yosuke letting out a soft sigh in relief that he had played it correctly. The man clad in cat pajamas gave a small applause and an affectionate smile in response.

“That was wonderful, Yosuke. You wrote that yourself?”

“Y-Yeah… actually, I wrote it for you, heh.”

“I’m honored.” Yu leaned in and planted a kiss on his cheek.

“I’m glad you liked it. Er.. Merry Christmas, Partner.” He set the guitar aside and fiddled his fingers, suddenly feeling a new hot wave of anxiety seize him.

“Oh! Was that my present? Thank you,” Yu chimed happily.

“No, no.. that wasn’t it. That was just… uh, yeah, not your present.”

“No? You sure are spoiling me this year then, hehe. As for any name ideas…” he trailed off as he began thinking, tapping his foot on the ground.

“W-Well, let me stop you for a second. I want to say some stuff, alright?”

“Hm?” Yu echoed as his attention focused back to his caramel haired boyfriend, quite curious now. His silence prompted Yosuke to continue.

“Right, so… I just wanna say… thanks. For existing, really. For being you… for everything. I still have no clue what you see in a guy like me, honestly. I sure made things real difficult for you back in highschool. I was… scared to accept that part of myself, you know? Up until then, I’d liked girls and only girls… and then you had to come waltzing in with your nice face and personality and nice… well, _everything_ and caused me to have the biggest identity crisis of my life besides facing my shadow. What I thought had been jealousy was actually admiration and all these weird feelings I had that I couldn’t make heads or tails of… you know how that story goes. Sorry, I’m kinda going off track here, aren’t I? A whole lot of things didn’t make sense to me back then, but you being special to me? That did. I.. I never knew I could feel such heat inside. You remember when I told you that at the riverbank? Heh, it was kinda me admitting my feelings to you discreetly. I was scared shitless for many reasons. Coming to terms with myself, not to mention I was scared about how you would react… how others would see me. But you know, that was pretty stupid. You still accepted me after seeing some of the darkest parts of me, didn’t you? You kept being friends with the guy you pulled out of the trashcan that morning. So… thank you, Yu. You really changed my life.”

“Yosuke…”

“S-So…” he started as he got up from his seat at the couch which caused Yu to instinctively stand up as well. The gravity of Yosuke’s tone suggested what he was going to say was something he should probably be standing for. He followed as his boyfriend paced back a few steps and continued talking. “I can’t imagine my life without you. We’ve been through so much together… you’re special to me in ways I can’t explain with words. I love you, and I-I… want to spend the rest of our lives together.”

This caused Yu to freeze as it sank in what was happening. His heart was thumping so hard he could barely hear Yosuke, who he had his eyes trained on as if he’d disappear if he blinked too slowly. He put a hand to his mouth as he watched Yosuke reach for the pocket of his pants and pull out a small grey box. He got down on one knee, looking up at Yu with a mix of nervous endearment and anticipation.

“So what I’m trying to say is, Yu… Partner. Will you marry me?” he asked earnestly as he opened the box, presenting the silver band to the man who he truly wanted to spend the rest of his life with and couldn’t imagine one without. The ring rested in a sea of white velvet to compliment the grey box, looking like it longed to be placed on a finger.

Yu was left stunned for a moment, truly at a loss for words. _Yosuke wanted to marry him_? This was the same boy that was afraid of Kanji for potentially being gay and was no stranger to making distasteful jokes and rude comments. Now here he was, on one knee with ring in hand asking his best friend to be his partner-partner. That’s why he had cared about the weather and going out this evening, he had been planning to propose..!

“I-I know this isn’t the ideal setting for this, I wanted to do it on the riverbank, but the snow-

-Yosuke..!” Yu finally managed to exclaim, looking down at him with misty eyes. “Oh my god…” he stammered before turning and sprinting off into their room, leaving Yosuke mid-proposal with a now very confused face.

_Oh no. What have I done._ That thought was the only one that resonated throughout the shock and confusion Yosuke was feeling as he watched Yu run off. He stood up, biting his lip as he began to close the box and think of a way to apologize to him. He watched Yu re-emerge from their bedroom frantically, more frantically than Yosuke had seen him move since the incident with Nanako at the hospital all those years ago, and bolt back into the living room looking very disheveled.

“Shit, Yu, I’m so sorr-

Yosuke was cut off as Yu held up a small black box and opened it, revealing… a ring. Wait, a _ring_? His eyes darted between it and his lover, his mouth gaping open as his brain short circuited. “Oh… my god. Yu?”

“Y-You…” the usually composed man begun. “You beat me to it! I was going to do this tomorrow..!”

Yosuke’s shocked expression remained for a moment as he processed what he had been told before lighting up with ecstatic joy. The both of them immediately erupted in laughter, Yosuke rushing over and pulling Yu into a hug. “I can’t… believe..!”

“You..! Yosuke! Oh my god!” Yu stammered in between chuckles, reciprocating the hug immediately as they both laughed against each other and caused the tense atmosphere to quickly dissipate.

Once they regained their composure, Yosuke stepped back with a tear stained face and a sheepish grin plastered on his face. “S-So… is that a yes?”

“Of course it is! Yes, Yosuke!” he exclaimed, wiping a tear from his eye that had been threatening to leave.

Hearing that made his heart swell. He wanted to leap with joy and shout at the top of his lungs, but he stayed composed enough to ask, “m-may I do the honors, then?” as he held up his ring for Yu, who eagerly presented his hand. Yosuke gently slid the silver band on his finger, revealing a small engraving of a few music notes on ledger lines. “...It’s the last notes of the song I wrote for you,” he explained. “It actually wasn’t finished, that’s why it didn’t have a name… until now. It’s called ‘Yes’. And they uh, they’re meant to say ‘I love you’.”

“So cheesy…” Yu murmured as he admired it with complete adoration. “So perfectly cheesy... So amazingly perfect, just like you, Yosuke.” The reaction elicited a warm, hearty laugh from the ring’s designer, who then held up his own hand.

“What are you waiting for? Ring me!” he demanded excitedly. His hand was visibly shaking, so Yu gently grasped his wrist to steady it as he slid the ring he had gotten for him on his finger. It was also silver in color, but had three orange gemstones embedded into it. One in the middle, with a smaller gem on each side. Simple and discrete, so very like Yu.

“I was told sunstone symbolizes light and life,” he explained as he gently stroked Yosuke’s hand to calm him. “And you remind me of the sun, always so bright, warm and alive… I thought it would suit you.”

“Well? Does it?” he asked as he wiggled his fingers.

“It looks better than I imagined.” He looked up to take in Yosuke’s happy expression as he admired their rings, but it was short lived as the other man quickly looked up to meet his gaze.

“We are going to get married... holy shit?” he stated in disbelief.

“We really are,” Yu affirmed with such sincerity it made his partner start to tear up again. “And there’s no one I’d rather marry.”

“I love you,” Yosuke couldn’t help but say once more.

“I love you too.” With that, Yu cupped his new fiance’s cheek in his hand, and he reached up to rest his own hand on top of it. Seeing their rings together, happily adorned by two partners in love and on the cusp of a new chapter of their lives was enough to cause some tears to fall from Yu’s eyes. Yosuke raised his eyebrows, indicating he was about to ask if he was okay, but before he could Yu smiled and shook his head before pulling him in for a kiss.

Things may not have gone how either of them planned, but they had gone how they ought to. The riverbank could wait, Yosuke reaffirmed in his head. This was more special than he could’ve ever hoped for it to have been.

“Merry Christmas, Partner.”


End file.
